BUNCO FUNDRAISER TO BENEFIT HOSPICE

Third annual event will feature raffles, dinner, door prizes

Typically when Bunco is played, it doesn’t involve a room filled with nearly 100 people. But the organized chaos that was last year’s second annual Hospice of the Valleys’ Bunco fundraiser was so much fun and so successful, organizers decided to keep the tradition alive, they said.

“What made it so fun last year was it was nice to see 80 people get together and play,” said Sarah Gerow, development coordinator for Hospice of the Valleys. “(When playing Bunco), you have to move from one table to the other. It took a little while for everyone to get on the same page, but once that happened, it worked out very well.”

The third annual event is set for 6 to 9 p.m. Friday at Fountain Glen, 27250 Nicolas Road, in Temecula.

Attendees will receive a dinner courtesy of Chick-fil-A, and enjoy a competitive game of Bunco as well as raffles and prizes. Tickets cost $25 and include Bunco buy-in, dinner and a door-prize entry.

“Everything is donated,” Gerow said. “This year we have some great gift baskets. We have a Chick-fil-A gift basket, a Starbucks gift basket, a Taste of Temecula gift basket.”

The top Bunco prize will be a cash award, and the second-place prize is tickets to the hospice’s signature fundraiser of the year, A Day of Wine and Chocolate, which is scheduled for Sept. 29.

The Bunco fundraiser will help pay for hospice services such as medications, supplies and nursing visits. The nonprofit works to foster “reverence for life, relief from suffering, and compassion in loss for terminally ill residents and their families.”

The organization helps everyone who seeks assistance, so the need to raise money is great, Gerow said.

“We don’t turn anyone away, regardless of their ability to pay,” she said. “We service Southwest Riverside County, so it’s a good opportunity to give back to the community.”

Tickets can be purchased at the hospice, 25240 Hancock Ave., Suite 120, in Murrieta. For information on the fundraiser, call (951) 200-7800.